"Excellence through knowledge, Achievement through Commitment"

Faculty

Note: Not all professors teach every semester.

Professor Haasty Sara Bassiri

(J.D. Pacific West College of Law)

Professor Bassiri is an associate attorney at Hudson & Associates located in Irvine, where she practices Civil and Family law. She received her Juris Doctor degree from Pacific West College of Law in 2012 and was in the honor roll during her attendance. She earned her Bachelors of Science in Political Science degree from University of Irvine – California.

She taught Appellate Advocacy and Property.

Professor James A. Coulter, III

(J.D. Pepperdine University School of Law, Malibu)

Professor Coulter is a former Orange County District Attorney and had been the supervising District Attorney for various Courts as well as the head of the “Hate Crimes Unit” for Orange County. He is currently practicing in the private sector as a Defense attorney. Professor Coulter classes include Evidence, Criminal Law, Constitutional Law, Professional Responsibility, Trial Practice and Criminal Procedure.

Professor William B. Dixon

(J.D. Western State University)

Professor Dixon has been a license attorney since 1976. Dean Dixon made his career in legal education. He was associate dean and professor of torts and trusts at Western State University College of Law, Fullerton, where he worked for 20 years. Currently, he is the Director of Paralegal Studies and an instructor at South Coast College, Orange, California.

Dr. Dixon is currently the Faculty President of Pacific West College of Law.

Professor Heather Helene Duro

(J.D. Pacific West College of Law)

Professor Duro is a practicing attorney. She was admitted to the Bar in 2009. She earned her Bachelor's degree at the University of Redlands and received her Juris Doctor from Pacific West College of Law in which she graduated with distinguished honor.

She taught Torts and American Jurisprudence.

Professor Vinh The Do

(J.D. Pacific West College of Law)

Professor Do is a practicing attorney. He was admitted to the Bar in 2013. He earned his Bachelor's Degree at Cal State Fullerton and received his Juris Doctor from Pacific West College of Law in which he graduated with distinguished honor.

He taught Contracts and Appellate Advocacy.

Professor Christopher Holm

(J.D. Pacific West College of Law)

Professor Holm is a practicing attorney. He was recently admitted to the bar (2016). He graduated from Pacific West College of Law. He earned his Bachelor's degree at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, Arkansas.

He teaches Torts.

Professor Daniel L. Jacobson

(J.D. Western State University College of Law)

Although
Daniel Lee Jacobson has been a full-time attorney since 1988, for most
his legal career Professor Jacobson has also taught law school. He is
one of California’s most respected and prolific authors of legal
scholarly articles. With 23 of Professor Jacobson’s articles published
in California’s leading legal journals, Professor Jacobson has and
continues to not only educate Pacific West’s students, but to also has
and continues to educate the California legal profession as a whole.

Professor
Jacobson is a governor on the Board of Governors of the California
Insurance Guarantee Association, having been appointed to that position
by John Garamendi when Lieutenant Governor Garamendi was California’s
Insurance Commissioner. Professor Jacobson is also a member of the Board
of Directors of the Donna O’Neill Land Conservancy, having received
that appointment from the County of Orange.

Professor
Jacobson has served as a temporary judge on the Orange County Superior
Court, as an arbitrator for both the San Bernardino Superior Court and
the Better Business Bureau, and as a mediator. He is a lifetime member
of Friends of the Tustin Library, and is retired from the Board of
Directors of the Nanette Brody Dance Theater, the Long Beach Commission
on Youth, and the California Democratic Party’s Central Committee.
Professor Jacobson teaches U.C.C., Business Organizations and Trial
Practice.

Professor Thomas Lo

(J.D. Western State University College of Law)

Professor
Lo is a Senior Deputy Public Defender for the County of Orange. He is assigned
to the felony panel division in Santa Ana, and handles complex felony
cases. Professor Lo brings much practical experience to our school in
the areas of Criminal Law, Evidence, Trial Practice and Constitutional Law. He is also a mentor for elementary school children in the Santa Ana
School District, and a strong advocate of the homeless.

Dean Kevin O'Connell

(J.D. Western State University College of Law)

PROFILE

Licensed
Attorney in Private Practice since 1982 to present with 32 years of experience.

Licensed
by the Supreme Court of California since 1982 to present.

Licensed
by the Ninth Circuit court of Appeals since 1983 to present.

Licensed
by the Central District of California since 1983 to present.

Licensed
Talent Agent by the State of California for the year 1990.

Licensed
by the United State Tax Court since 1994 to present.

Licensed
by the State of Michoacán Mexico for year 1996.

Licensed
by the Supreme Court of the United States since 2011 to present

LEGAL
EXPERIENCE AND SOME NOTABLE CASE

Practice
in both Federal and States Courts for over 30 years.

Handled
and Litigated a First Degree Murder (Double Homicide) case People v. Le

Handled
and Litigated an Appeal of a Murder Conviction People v. Do

Handled
and Litigated a Second Degree Murder with an Insanity Defense People v. Petrisca

Handled
and Litigated a five (5) Counts of Attempted Murder case People v. Chimm

Handled
and Litigated a Rape and Burglary case People
v. Sok

Handled
and Litigated a Kidnapping for Ransom case People
v. Nguyen

Handled
and Litigated a Kidnapping and Carjacking case People v. Alpizar

Handled
and Litigated a Clean Water Violation case United
States v. Cooper

Handled
and Litigated a Foreign Extradition case United
States v. Choe

Handled
and Litigated a Medicare Fraud case United
States v. Powers

Handled
and Litigated Civil Appeals case Herrera
v. A & P Auto Sales

Handled and
Litigated for Defense on a Federal Insurance Fraud case Century Surety Company v. Nguyen/Scratch Billiards Sports Grill

Founded the
O’Connell College of Law Inc., Doing Business as Pacific West College of Law in
1993.

Designed,
Implemented and Obtained State of California approval for the Bachelor of
Science in Law and Juris Doctor Degree in 1993.

Designed,
Implemented and Obtained State of California approval for Master of Arts in Law
Degree in 1995.

Co-designed,
Implemented and Obtained State of California approval for L.L.M. Environmental
Law Degree in 1995.

Assisted
the design, Implemented and Obtained State of California approval for the L.L.
M. in Taxation Degree in 1995.

Designed
and implemented a Law School Student Exchange Program with Vasco De Quiroga Law
School Michoacán Mexico in the year 1996.

Designed,
Implemented and Obtained State of California approval of Law Courses which
includes Legal Analysis I, Legal Analysis II, Complex Theories of Law I,
Complex Theories of Law II, Trial Practice I and Trial Practice II, Dissolution
of Business Entities.

Graduation
Speaker at American Liberty University.

Graduation
Speaker at South Coast College

Graduation
Speaker at Pacific West College of Law

Chairman
of the Board – Pacific West College of Law

Chief Executive Officer – Pacific West College of Law

ACADEMIC
EXPERIENCE

Law
Professor for over 30 years at Various Law Schools.

Dean
at Pacific West College of Law for over 21 years from 1993 to present.

Law
Professor at Western State University College of Law from 1983 to 1984.

Law
Professor at American College of Law from 1984 to Early 1993.

Guest
Lecturer at Pepperdine Executive MBA Program from 1992 to 1993.

Law
Professor at Pacific West College of Law from 1993 to present.

Guest
Lecturer in numerous occasions at South Coast College Paralegal Program.

Member of the Law Schools Council of the State
Bar of California from 2008 to 2010.

COURSES TAUGHT IN SEVERAL DEGREE
PROGRAMS

Bachelor of Science in Law and Juris
Doctor Degree/Program - Courses Taught:

Transaction
in Goods, Rights and
Liabilities involved in Sole Proprietorships and Partnership,

Rights and
Liabilities involved in Corporations

Contractual
Relationships in the Business World

Products
Liability

Contractual
Relationships in the Business World

Negotiations
A and B

Labor and
Employment Law

International
Law

Dissolution
of Business Entities

EDUCATIONAL
BACKGROUND

JURIS DOCTOR
– Western State College of Law

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN LAW – Western State College of Law

ASSOCIATE DEGREE – Saddleback College

Professor Socorro O'Connell

(J.D.
Pacific West College of Law)

Professor O’Connell hails from Philippines. She graduated Valedictorian in High School, she
was a recipient of 12 Academic medals and a recipient of Philippine Senate
Medal of Academic Excellence Award. She was active in both academic and
extra curricular activities. She served as the Editor-in-Chief of her High
School Publication called “The Seagull” and was a band majorette. She was also
a recipient of a leadership award upon her high school graduation. She competed
as delegate for the Provincial Damath (an
educational board game which is a fusion of checkers and mathematics) competition
in the Philippines.

At the age of
21, she graduated Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from Saint Vincent College
(Philippines). She was a recipient of Academic Medals for Taxation and
Accounting. She was also recipient of a Leadership Award in College for serving as the Vice
President of the Supreme Student Government.

During her
High School and College years, she won numerous essay writing contests,
declamation contests, oratorical and extemporaneous speaking contests and was a
recipient of the “Declaimer of the Year” award in high school. She directed a
student play called the “Crucifixion” during the College talent exposition and
bagged the first place in that category. She participated in several beauty
pageants like Mutya ng Baliguian and Ms. JPIA Ambassadress of Goodwill.

During
College she participated in the Taxation Quiz Bowl Competition sponsored
jointly by the Philippine Bureau of Internal Revenue and Philippine Institute
of Certified Public Accountants (PICPA) Zamboanga Del Norte Chapter. She also
participated and attended numerous Seminars and Symposiums such as: Seminar on
Cooperativism, Business Principles and Success Factors and Employment
Facilitation sponsored jointly by Saint Vincent College and Department of Labor
and Employment (DOLE Philippines), she attended numerous JPIA Regional
Conventions and attended Symposium on Business Documentation and Procedures
sponsored by Dipolog Chamber of Commerce (Philippines).

She was a
recipient of pesfa scholarship for her entire College years (1999 to 2003)
sponsored by the Philippine Commission on Higher Education.

She holds a
Philippine Certificate of Eligibility issued by the Philippine Civil Service
Commission by passing the Career Service Professional Exam garnering an average
of 86.22%.

While in the
Philippines, she worked for a Local Municipal Government Unit and
later worked for a large Manufacturing and Oleochemical Company in Cebu City Philippines in its Administrative Services Department reporting directly to the
Company’s Vice-President for Administration and Finance and later added her
workload by also working in the Accounting Department.

In 2010, she
obtained her Master of Arts in Law Degree. In 2014, she obtained Bachelor of
Science in Law Degree and in 2015 she obtained her Jurisprudence Doctorate in
Law Degree from Pacific West College of Law graduating Summa Cum Laude.

Prior to her
graduation from law School, she was a certified law student by the State Bar of
California, during her third year in Law School, she sat in numerous depositions,
participated in several mediations, sat in numerous court hearings, wrote several motions and oppositions and
conducted a default prove up trial in the Superior Court of San Bernardino.

Prior to
graduation from Law school, she also sat as second chair to her supervising
attorney on a Bench trial in the Superior Court of Orange County, she delivered
the opening statement, conducted cross examination of a witness and delivered
the closing arguments at the conclusion of the trial.

She loves to
travel and have travelled 14 different States in the United States multiple times.

She volunteered
her time, initiated and launched the MOCK BABY Bar program at Pacific West.

She teaches
Legal Analysis I, Complex Theories of Law I and II and Torts.

Professor Orlando Bernarda Ruff

(J.D. Pacific West College of Law)

Professor Ruff grew up in Winnsboro
and is a former American Football player who played linebacker for the San
Diego Chargers, New Orleans Saints and Cleveland Browns. In College, he played
for Furman University departing as the fourth player in school history with 488
career tackles. He currently work in a private sector and his main line of duty
is to help retired professional athletes obtain worker’s compensation, medical
benefits and much more once their career are complete.

Professor Ruff teaches Torts.

Professor Paul Taylor Smith

(J.D. Western State University College of Law)

B.A.,
California State University, San Bernardino with Honors. MBA Claremont
Graduate University, with Distinction. J.D., Western State University,
Cum Laude. Further post-graduate education at University of California
School of Law, University of Southern California School of Law, and
Loyola Law School.

Professor
Smith was admitted to the bar in 1990 and has extensive experience in
civil litigation, criminal defense, family law, and appeals. He was
primary counsel on two published appellate decisions, one of which,
Andrews v. Mobile Aire Estates, (2005) 125 Cal.App.4th 578, greatly
expanded the protection the law requires landlords to provide their
tenants. He teaches Professional Responsibility, Civil Procedure, and
Evidence.

Professor Christopher M. Strobel

(J.D. American College of Law)

Professor Strobel has been a license
attorney since 1989. He is currently in private practice. He has been
employed by the Orange County Deputy Public Defenders Office for over
eight years. He was responsible for the representation of indigent
defendants in criminal matters.

His scope of representation included
the handling of misdemeanors and felonies from arraignment to sentencing
including writs and appeals. He also specializes in Juvenile Law.

Professor Strobel teaches Evidence and Criminal Law.

Professor Nanci Alis-Townsend

(J.D. Western State University College of Law)

Professor Townsend is a licensed Family law attorney in the State of California. She teaches Community Property.

Professor Sasan (Sean) Vahdat

(J.D. Pacific West College of Law)

Professor
Vahdat has been a licensed attorney since 2005. He graduated with Summa
Cum Laude, and Am Jured 22 classes. Professor Vahdat is currently, sole
practitioner and focusing in Business litigation, and Personal Injury.
He teaches Contracts, Criminal Law, Torts, and Remedies.